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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23857318">Phosphorescent</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/bleuhue/pseuds/bleuhue'>bleuhue</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>M/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-04-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-04-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-02 21:54:50</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Not Rated</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,417</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23857318</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/bleuhue/pseuds/bleuhue</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>It's been seven years since Saihara had last seen Ouma. Seven years of no contact or even a trace of the ultimate supreme leader. Ouma Kokichi was a ghost. All that remained of Ouma Kokichi was a bad memory. Said memory sends Saihara anonymous letters in order to meet again. </p><p>Shuichi Saihara is NOT thrilled to meet them.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Oma Kokichi/Saihara Shuichi</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>76</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Phosphorescent</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Shuichi Saihara received a letter.</span>
</p><p></p><blockquote>
  <p>
    <em>
      <strong>Have you forgotten?</strong>
    </em>
  </p>
</blockquote><p>
  <span>A letter was the least of his troubles in the middle of solving a robbery. The life of a detective was never easy, the long hours were draining. He couldn’t count how many times he had to reject his friend’s invitations to hang out. There was simply no time for going to movies or going out to eat at a restaurant. He was married to his work, which Kaede kindly pointed out. He was no fool to her intent. She wanted him to have some free time. Even if it wasn’t with the group, she wanted him to have a period of rest. Rest was not a concept in his system. How could he rest? People depended on him. He couldn’t fail, no, </span>
  <b>he wouldn’t fail.</b>
  <span> He would work and work until he found the answer, the truth. That was his job after all. What kind of detective would he be if he couldn’t find the ultimate truth? Nothing. He would be nothing. Not only that, but he would be a disappointment to his uncle. His uncle, who was more of a father to him than his actual father.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His parents had left him under the care of his uncle when he was only a child. The only form of interaction he had gotten from them was birthday phone calls, which he dreaded. It wasn’t that he hated them, but they knew nothing about him! They would go on and on about their careers and then all of a sudden ask him about his career. When he told them it was fine and just a little busy, they would tell him that it was lovely to hear him handling his job well. When he told them it was stressful, they simply told him with time things would be okay. With time things definitely weren’t okay. Time could mean the difference between life or death. Sadly, in his case… It was always the end. A detective was only useful when everything had already ended. It was a detective’s job to piece a story from the remaining puzzle pieces. From those remaining pieces, he would have to come up with other puzzle pieces. Sometimes these puzzle pieces didn’t fit and he would have to discard them, no matter how true they might have seemed. It was frustrating, but he was happy to help those in need.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The next day he received another short letter. </span>
</p><p></p><blockquote>
  <p>
    <em>
      <strong>You really forgot, huh?</strong>
    </em>
  </p>
</blockquote><p>
  <span>He simply moved it to the side, away from his current case. He needed to concentrate on his work and not some random person sending him vague letters. For all he knew someone was pranking him, which was not needed. If he allowed himself to indulge in the letter mystery then he wouldn’t be able to dedicate his time to the current case he was working on. Although, try as he may… He continued to think about the two letters and who could have possibly sent him those. The result was getting only three hours of sleep with no answers.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The following day he received another short letter.</span>
</p><p></p><blockquote>
  <p>
    <em>
      <strong>I’m coming to see you, so don’t be afraid. We were friends, after all. Meet me at the park. After work.</strong>
    </em>
  </p>
</blockquote><p>
  <span>This was it. This was the final straw. He was sick and tired of these vague short letters from an unknown sender. A sender that he apparently had a history with. He wasn’t sure who it was unless it was one of his middle school friends. That would be a stretch since he didn’t exactly leave an impression in middle school. He doubted anyone from his middle school would send him this letter. Against his better judgment, he decided to see through this matter alone. The case he was working on finally could get the attention it needed once he was done with whoever decided to send him these short letters. Practically storming to the park, he was prepared to tell them off for leaving him messages when he was a busy man.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>However, when he did arrive...</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ouma Kokichi was there, in the flesh. Arms extended towards him, awaiting a hug.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>“Come on Saihara-chan! You know you can’t say good-bye without a hug! Just kidding, who needs hugs from Mr. Emo?” A seventeen-year-old Ouma Kokichi shouted, despite standing next to him. Exasperated, he allowed Ouma to hug him. Only one day in high school and there was someone demanding hugs from him. It wasn’t bad per se, but it was strange. They were still practically strangers, yet Ouma could care less and simply hugged him. As if there was nothing odd about them hugging whatsoever.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A beginning of a ritual.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>It had been seven years since they had last met. It was safe to say there was nothing between them. How could there be anything between them anymore? </span>
  <em>
    <span>You vanished. </span>
  </em>
  <span>He continued to stare in disbelief at his former classmate. Ouma’s smile didn’t waver nor did the arms awaiting an embrace. Ouma Kokichi still retained their youthful appearance throughout the years. They also retained their checkered bandana. Nothing much had changed from the Ouma he had known seven years ago. If anything changed it would have to be their outfit. Although, he wasn’t sure if it was better than what they had worn seven years ago. </span>
  <em>
    <span>The colors clash. Seven years does have a way of changing things, I suppose. Although, I’m not sure if neon clothing was what I was expecting. </span>
  </em>
  <span>He found himself staring at a neon purple hoodie and neon green pants. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Then again, I never know with him.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Laughter cut his thoughts, and he found himself staring at Ouma’s dazzling smile. “Come on, are you gonna gape at me like a dumb emo fish? Just kidding, fish are WAAAAAY smarter than emo Saihara-chan.” Ouma still had his arms extended to him, awaiting the once usual embrace. He wasn’t going to. No, Ouma didn’t deserve it. Ouma had sent him letters, which deterred his concentration from his cases. His brain had been trying to figure out the meaning of those vague letters, which led him to sleep even less. He couldn’t contain himself any longer.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“WHERE WERE YOU? YOU THINK YOU CAN JUST WALTZ BACK INTO MY LIFE AFTER EVERYTHING?! AFTER YOU LEFT?!” There was no hint of regret, pure malice built up from frustration over the years. He couldn’t help himself from pointing at Ouma in accusation. It was a habit he had developed during his high school years and it would remain one till the end of time. It helped too. Ouma had completely shut up and the grin they had bore wiped off their face. What replaced it was a blank expression.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Still, this was not the end. He had been holding in all the things he had been trying to say when they were still classmates. When he built his confidence with the help of others.  “Is this still a joke to you? Sending me these letters and messing with my work? This is serious Ouma! For once and your life can you just be serious? This isn’t a school where you can mess around and get away with it. I can have you charged with harassment. What you’re doing is making my job difficult, mind you a job that’s saving people’s lives. If you wanted to chat then you could have called me or emailed me, but no. You just have to make everything… Make everything COMPLICATED!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Then, there was Ouma’s horse-like laughter.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was enough to draw a harsh breath from him, and he wanted nothing more than to punch Ouma as Kaito had done all those years ago. However, he was a detective. He had a standard to uphold. Even when it came to people like Ouma Kokichi. “I knew it. Even after all these years, you’d never change. I’m leaving.” There was a tug at his arm, and he pulled away harshly. Ouma’s grip only tightened as they stumbled at the sudden force. He whipped around in fury to see his hat. The hat that he had worn all the time before he gained confidence and discarded it. </span>
  <em>
    <span>I thought I still had it. Is that why I couldn’t find it? I thought it was buried underneath papers.</span>
  </em>
  <span> All the rage that had built up within him was thrown out the window when he brought his hand to grip the comforting fabric. </span>
  <em>
    <span>When did I lose it? </span>
  </em>
  <span>He didn’t even register Ouma letting go of his arm. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Graduation,” Ouma finally answered. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was dumbfounded. Did he really not notice his hat had been gone for seven years? Was he that awful of a detective? A detective needed to be observant. How could he call himself one when he couldn’t even realize he lost something dear to him? </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ouma’s lips formed a small smile, “You know, you still think too loudly Saihara-chan. But that’s a lie!” </span>
  <em>
    <span>Now that was a lie, Ouma. </span>
  </em>
  <span>Then, there was an awkward silence. His grip tightened, his hat crumpled from his actions. It was tempting to put on after all these years, but he knew that Ouma was able to tear at him with or without the hat. He wasn’t even sure if the hat would do him any good in this situation. He glanced at Ouma, purposely ignoring their eyes. If he looked at those violet eyes he would crumble and be unable to piece himself together. After his outburst, he was sure Ouma was going to say something about it. Ouma Kokichi seven years ago would have made his life hell for yelling at them. Who's to say that the present Ouma Kokichi wouldn’t tear down his walls and reduce him to nothing? There was absolutely no current evidence to prove that Ouma Kokichi would yell at him, nor was there evidence to prove that Ouma Kokichi would be honest. As far as he knew, they were still a liar. Considering they’ve said their iconic phrase at least once. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>What he didn’t expect was for Ouma to sigh and turn away from him. “I know. My dearest Saihara-chan wants me to stay so badly, so I decided to have some fun with him! But… That’s a lie. Saihara-chan totally remembers what he said to me. He said that I’ll be surrounded by friends and never be alone. I’m so happy Saihara-chan was right! I’ve got a bunch of buddies and we go around committing heinous crimes! It’s too bad Saihara-chan couldn’t join my secret organization. We could have been awful partners in crime!” There was no mistaking the sadness laced within those words. Words exchanged between them resulted in an endless battle between truth and lie, but he won this battle. No matter how cheerful Ouma’s words seemed, it was always to hide what was truly bothering the former ultimate supreme leader. Lies were Ouma’s defense mechanism.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He hated lies, even now. Ouma’s lies normally led to frustration, but these lies reduced him to tears and guilt. He said such awful things to Ouma. He did awful things too. Perhaps, what he had done was even more harmful than what Ouma had done to him. He was beyond exhausted when Ouma kept insulting his friends and himself, even if it was meant as a joke. Ouma had the gall to say that everyone else in their class was holding him back and that he should align himself with them. That a partnership between them would be leagues better than him and Momota. He didn’t speak with Ouma for an entire week, despite Ouma clinging to him like a koala. The final straw had been when Ouma managed to get Gonta to do something awful to Miu. It was that day everyone turned against Ouma, even him. </span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>You’re alone and you’ll always be.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>That’s what he told Ouma. Initially, Ouma continued wreaking havoc per usual. However, no one wanted anything to do with them. Everyone decided to ignore them and group events without them. He remembered vividly how much happier everyone was without Ouma’s presence and the insults they made about the ultimate supreme leader. Well… He didn’t say any insults, but he didn’t stop the others from mocking Ouma when the supreme leader was not invited to any gatherings. Ouma seemed to have gotten the message that they were the most hated person within their class, but they didn’t get the message that their hugging ritual had come to an end as well. Every day Ouma would hug him before leaving, regardless of whether or not he wanted a hug. Even though he made it apparent he wanted nothing to do with the liar by keeping their interactions to a minimum and refusing to reciprocate their farewell hugs as he had used to.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was graduation when something new happened. Everyone’s relatives had shown up, all except for Ouma’s. The detective didn’t question it at the time. He had been furious with Ouma and left him, just like everyone else. </span>
  <em>
    <span>The one who left was me. I was the one who abandoned you. It must have been unbearably lonely.</span>
  </em>
  <span> Ugly sobs escaped his lips, fat tears rolled down his already wet cheeks, and he began to tremble.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Yes, it was that day… Graduation… When everyone was surrounded by those they loved, Ouma was all alone. Not even Amami or Kiibo congratulated them or gave a hug. Even someone as kind as Kaede kept her distance from him. It wasn’t like Ouma could pretend their parents cared, considering no one showed up. Instead, Ouma approached him while he was conversing with his uncle. He didn’t even notice Ouma had been there until his uncle had pointed it out. The smile on his face was replaced with a frown when he came face to face with Ouma. He had assumed it would be the last time he would ever have to deal with the liar, so he played nice and gave them the time of day. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Normally, Ouma would joke around and tease him for a bit. However, Ouma did none of those things. At the time, he assumed it had to be due to his uncle’s and everyone else’s presence.  Ouma instead, with a blank expression, told him, “Congrats Saihara-Kun.” He was shocked at the time. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Saihara-Kun?</span>
  </em>
  <span> Never had Ouma called his name properly, so he couldn’t help himself from giving the ultimate supreme leader a small genuine smile. It was then, that he decided that graduation was a day of firsts. The first time when Ouma said his name properly, and it was also the first time when he held out his arms to Ouma for a hug.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>All the animosity he held towards Ouma had dissipated and for a moment… He no longer saw a liar. What he saw was just another classmate. However, the reality was shattered when he noticed everyone glancing at him in shock. He realized what he had done and awkwardly dropped his arms to his side. For a moment he could have sworn he saw surprise from Ouma, but it was gone as quickly as it came. Instead, Ouma smiled. This smile was one he could never forget. It was burned to memory. He couldn’t help, but think at the time… </span>
  <em>
    <span>That smile suits you much better.</span>
  </em>
  <span> A real genuine smile from Ouma was a sight to behold. He also recalled that Ouma chuckled and left without a word. That day… That day they didn’t hug each other. The day after that, Ouma became nothing more than a bad memory. A ghost.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Others would speak horribly of Ouma, but eventually, everyone had moved on and forgotten. Even he had forgotten Ouma Kokichi. A classmate who used to hug him every day when school ended. Little did he know he would meet the liar again, seven years later. </span>
  <em>
    <span>In the end, I never understood anything about you.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>He continued to sob and tremble, only to stop when he was surrounded by warmth. He ended up dropping his hat from shock. It didn’t take him long to realize what happened. He held Ouma fiercely, afraid that he would vanish again if he were to loosen his grip. A laugh, “Silly Saihara-chan, there’s nothing for you to cry about.” </span>
  <em>
    <span>Don’t lie. Please don’t say those things. </span>
  </em>
  <span>His grip tightened, “Yes there is! I’m sorry. I’m so sorry for saying all those mean things. For abandoning you. For not trying to stay in touch. For not be-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Shuichi.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He froze. This was a new first. A first in seven years.  “I’m going to say this once, so listen closely okay? You deserve this truth, after everything,” Ouma continued. </span>
  <em>
    <span>A truth?! </span>
  </em>
  <span>Before he could analyze what Ouma had told him, he found himself nodding. A truth from Ouma of all people was unheard of. They were practically the king of liars. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I made a wish a long time ago. I’ve waited for years and it finally came true. To make my wish come true, I hurt so many people and I stole from so many people too, but even though I did all that… It only ruined the chances of making my wish come true. That’s why I had to leave to make sure my only wish came true. I finally returned because it came true. That’s also why I gave you back your hat. I don’t need it anymore. I… I wanted to see you and hug you one last time before I leave forever,” Ouma chuckled. No matter how much he replayed Ouma’s words, he found himself unable to detect a lie. Even if Ouma stated he was going to give him a truth, he still couldn’t help himself from dissecting their truth. A truth that he had been blind to all these years. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What was your wish?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ouma pulled away from him, tilting their head to the side. “For Shuichi Saihara to become the best detective there ever was.” Something within him shattered. He found himself holding Ouma as tight as he could. He was a crybaby alright.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>He hated Ouma. He wanted nothing to do with the ultimate supreme leader. It had only been a week since they had a fallout, but he wasn’t going to give in and allow Ouma to try and pretend nothing didn’t happen. The two of them were on cleaning duty today, which he was not looking forward to. Ouma never cleaned, he just goofed around while he did all the work! Cleaning was simply not in Ouma’s vocabulary. He was pretty sure he had never seen Ouma pick up a broom. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Does he even know how to clean?</span>
  </em>
  <span> It was then that Ouma decided to call his name. Keep in mind that they had a fallout and he was not in the mood for any conversation with the liar. He sighed in relief when Ouma gave up calling his name.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>What he didn’t expect was for Ouma to say, softy, practically a whisper in the silent room, “Whenever I see a beautiful light I feel lonely. It makes me feel sad. Maybe because I know it'll fade away.” He didn’t say anything. He just continued cleaning the classroom, ignoring Ouma’s footsteps nearing him and hugging him. A hug he didn’t reciprocate. Even as Ouma gave him a slight squeeze. He just continued cleaning, while Ouma left without another word. </span>
  <em>
    <span>He’s just messing with me</span>
  </em>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Maybe they’d been there for an hour. Maybe for half an hour. Maybe even five minutes just standing and hugging each other. Eventually, the pair pulled apart, only for him to ask, “How come you didn’t make a wish for yourself?” Ouma simply picked up the hat he had dropped and shrugged, “I dunno. Maybe..” He couldn’t but smile as he held Ouma’s hand. What was the answer?</span>
</p><p>
  <span class="u">
    <b>
      <em>I love you.</em>
    </b>
    
  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Time and time again Ouma had expressed words of love for him. He couldn’t take it seriously back then. How could he? Ouma was still as much of an enigma as ever. It was much too soon to give Ouma an answer, but maybe they didn’t want one. </span>
  <em>
    <span>He’s been by my side all the time, even when I hurt him. He’s been looking out for me and supporting me in his own way. I never asked him to, so why?</span>
  </em>
  <span> Perhaps, he may never find the true answer. Perhaps, there was no answer. Perhaps, the answer will change over time. What wouldn’t change was the warmth of Ouma’s hand.</span>
</p>
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